Slayers NEXT Alternate Past
by Shira
Summary: When momentus events in history occur, several different paths can be taken. In this story, one of those momentous events occurs, but history takes a different turn, and suddenly Lina isn't the one Hellmaster is after...
1. The Secret of the Claire Bible

**Slayers NEXT: Alternate Past**

**Disclaimer and Author's Note: **I don't own Slayers, even though I reeeeaaally wish I did. Up until now, my muse had abandonned me, and if I was ever inspired to write anything, it never got finished. Finally, I sat down one day to watch the last DVD of Slayers NEXT, because it's my favorite ^^ Then, suddenly, BOOM! It hit me! And this idea came!! And I liked this idea SO much, that I was DETERMINED to finish it, whether my muse wanted me to or not! So, here is the result! Note that lots of these lines were taken directly from the series, and I hope I'm not breaking any laws or anything by doing this. Let me just say that it's all for fun, and I'm just a fan wanting to write a ficcie. So, enjoy. 

**SPOILER WARNING: LOTS OF THIS STUFF ACTUALLY DOES HAPPEN IN THE SERIES, OR IS VERY CLOSE TO WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENS. IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE LAST SIX OR SEVEN EPISODES OF NEXT, YOU MIGHT NOT WANT TO READ THIS AND SPOIL EVERYTHING.**

...§...§... 

When momentous events in history take place, several different paths can be taken, and different outcomes are possible. Lina Inverse was showed an alternate past, one that could have happened, but didn't, when she had cast the Giga Slave for the first time. A spell such as that could have many different effects on the world, or even just on certain people. 

There are other events that have happened in the recent past that could have turned out much differently. This is just one of them. Lina Inverse, Gourry Gabriev, Zelgadis Greywords, Amelia Wil Tesla Seyruun, Martina Zoana Mel Navratilova, Xellos Metallium, and the little boy have just arrived in the Katahto Mountains. They've already met with Milgasia, and he's agreed to take Lina Inverse to see the true Claire Bible. This is where events start to change. 

...§...§... 

Milgasia reached out for Lina's hand. "Come with me," he said. "Here it is." 

Lina looked around wildly. "Huh ?What? Where? I don't see it!" All she could see was the large cliff face they were walking against, and a wide flat area littered with large rock outcroppings here and there. Nothing that looked even remotely like a Claire Bible. 

With a half smile, Milgasia placed his other hand against the flat of the cliff surface, and a whirling distortion of color appeared in the solid rock. "It is through here," he explained. 

"Oh," Lina said. "All right." She started to take Milgasia's hand, but an explosion on the ground to one side of them stopped her. Everyone turned to see what had caused the explosion. "Saygram!" Lina shouted in shock when she realized who it was they were looking at. 

"WAAAAH! It's HIM again!!!" Martina screamed, in tears. 

"You thought you could escape me, Lina Inverse?" Saygram asked, pointing a bandaged hand at her. 

Lina felt herself automatically in a battle stance. "I nearly killed you last time! You want to face me again?" she demanded. Behind her, she heard the hum of the Sword of Light, and knew that Zelgadis and Amelia would be getting ready to cast spells upon a moment's notice. 

Saygram's red eye seemed to shine brighter. "I intend to kill you this time, Lina Inverse." 

"I think not," Lina told him forcefully, bringing her hands up to cast a spell. 

Without a moment's notice or hesitation, Saygram's eye flashed a brilliantly bright blue. Lina felt a shock of pain run through her, and she was slammed backwards by the force of it, and into the face of the cliff. She fell to the ground, jarring her already pained body. She was nearly unconscious, but could hear her friends calling her name, running over to her. She was aware that she was bleeding badly. And the only thing she could think of was getting to the Claire Bible. 

"Lina, answer me!" Gourry shouted, half-holding her. "Lina!" 

In a choked voice, Lina said, "Amelia...." 

Amelia's breath caught in her throat. "What is it, Lina-san?" she managed to ask, trying to ignore the sight of blood around Lina. She and Zelgadis were both maintaining Recovery spells, hoping it would be enough to help. 

"Amelia," Lina said, her eyes unfocusing. "You go.... to the Claire Bible...." 

Amelia's eyes widened. "But, Lina-san! You have to! I can't..." 

"I'm telling you to," Lina said in as stern a voice she could manage in her condition. "Go, Amelia.... Find out about..... Gaav....." She broke off as she choked a moment, and coughed it out so she could finish. "How to defeat..... high-level mazoku...." 

Her eyes watering, Amelia shook her head, and started to protest. Milgasia stopped her by grabbing her arm, and giving her a sharp look. "If Lina has told you to go, then we must go." 

Amelia looked down at Lina, who was on the brink of consciousness, then back up at Milgasia. "Okay," she said in a determined, if shaky voice. She allowed herself to be hauled to her feet and led back to the warped space in the cliff by Milgasia. She looked over her shoulder, and saw Gourry standing protectively in front of Lina, the Sword of Light drawn. Zelgadis was still casting his Recovery spell. Martina and the little boy were off somewhere, hiding. Saygram was looking ready to fight with Gourry, but Xellos stepped in, saying, "I'll be the one you fight, Saygram-san!" The two of them then seemed to disappear into nothing more than flashes of light and dark. 

"Quickly," Milgasia said insistently. Amelia reverted her attention back to him, and nodded. His hand still in a tight grip on her arm, Milgasia stepped through the distorted space. Amelia closed her eyes as she was taken through, wondering why, of all people, Lina had chosen _her_ to go to the Claire Bible. Surely Zelgadis would have been a better choice? But, no, Lina had picked her, Amelia, to go. And go she would. Amelia hoped that Lina would be okay. 

...§...§... 

Gourry was back on his knees beside Lina, watching Zelgadis cast his healing spell, and wishing he could do more to help. But with Xellos and Saygram now off in the Astral Plane fighting (they weren't even flashes of light anymore) and Zelgadis being the only one of them who knew how to use magic, there wasn't anything he could do. Tense with apprehension, Gourry looked around for Martina and the little boy. He found Martina curled up behind a rock outcrop, the boy right by her. 

Gourry's wandering eye also caught something else. Something very unusual. Two balls, one red, one gray, about the size of a soccer ball appeared out of nowhere. The balls started hovering above them, making weird humming noises. 

"Zel.... What are those?" Gourry asked, pointing to the spheres. 

Zelgadis looked up, and said, "I don't know. A souvenir from Saygram, maybe?" 

"I guess we have to fight them?" Gourry wondered, drawing his sword again. 

"Maybe," Zelgadis agreed. "You'll have to do the fighting, Gourry. I have to finish this Recovery spell, and Martina's no help." 

Gourry grinned reassuringly. "I can handle this." He stood up and glared at the colored spheres. He would protect Lina from anything that threatened to hurt her. 

...§...§... 

Amelia looked around, her eyes wide with wonder. She and Milgasia were inside another dimension, full of bright colors and warped shapes. It was almost hypnotizing the way the colors swirled around them. They didn't seem to be standing on a floor, either. Instead, it was almost like they were floating in the middle of everything. It would have almost been creepy if it wasn't so beautiful. 

"Keep close to me," Milgasia said, breaking the silence. "This place is a natural labyrinth. One wrong step, and you could be lost wandering through here for eternity." 

"Really??" Amelia cried, her hands balled up by her face. Suddenly, the place didn't seem as pretty anymore. 

Milgasia started walking. "You should be fine if you don't stray from my lead." 

Amelia was quickly walking as close behind Milgasia as she could without stepping on his heels. "Oh, you don't have to worry about that," she said with a nervous laugh. "I don't want to get lost for eternity!" _Besides_, she thought, _Lina-san would never forgive me if I didn't get the information from the Claire Bible._

...§...§... 

Zelgadis had to stop the Recovery spell once again on a split second's notice, and throw up a shield spell. The spheres were turning out to be more trouble than either he or Gourry had predicted. The red one kept firing off hundreds of Flare Arrows at a time, and the gray one would always jump in to keep Gourry from hitting the red one. It was a good technique on their part, but in the case of Gourry and Zelgadis, it wasn't so great. Gourry was hard-pressed to keep from getting blasted by the spells, and was very frustrated with not being able to damage either of them, even with the Sword of Light. 

Gourry jumped up, yelling, ready to slash the red sphere. At the last minute, however, the ball changed colors!! It was then the gray sphere, and easily shielded against Gourry's attack. Gourry fell back down to the ground, somehow managing to keep his balance. 

"It looks like they even have the ability to change colors," Zelgadis said grumpily. "At this rate..." 

Zelgadis was cut off as the red sphere came streaking towards them. "Gourry!" he called as a warning. Gourry turned around just in time, and swung at the sphere with his sword. Just before impact, the red sphere changed to gray again, and was just knocked back. 

"Come on!" Gourry shouted in frustration, watching the spheres as they circled around them. 

Zelgadis looked back down at Lina, still casting his spell. She'd stopped bleeding, and she should come around soon. Then the three of them would all be able to attack. Zelgadis looked up at Gourry again, and saw the swordsman's gaze drifting over to Lina more and more often. It wasn't surprising that Gourry would be worried, but he couldn't be distracted while fighting these things. Zelgadis wished the Recovery spell would hurry up already. He also couldn't help but think of how Amelia was getting on, and what was happening with her. 

...§...§... 

"Still," Milgasia said, once again breaking a long silence that had settled down over them. "I know why Xellos put such faith in Lina Inverse." 

"But, really, Milgasia-san," Amelia said. "Lina-san isn't even a longtime acquaintance with Xellos-san like you are." 

Milgasia stopped, mid-step. "Acquaintance..." he murmured, almost too quietly for Amelia to hear. He turned to stare sternly at Amelia. "Why do you think I bothered to take a human this far? It's because I'm afraid. Afraid of Xellos." Milgasia then gave her a look, the likes of which Amelia had never received before. "Never challenge a mazoku," he told her, his voice strong and steady. "There is nothing more reckless than to do so." 

Amelia crossed her arms. "Some people can be reckless, you know," she said in defense of Lina. 

"Like Lina-san?" a familiar voice asked. 

"Auntie Aqua?" Amelia asked, looking down at the short old lady, whom she knew to be the remains of the Water Dragon King. 

"Speaking of which," Auntie Aqua said, looking around. "Where _is_ Lina-san?" 

Amelia's eyes dropped to the ground, and filled slightly with the shimmer of tears. "She's hurt. It was Saygram. She told me to come in here and get some information from the Claire Bible." 

Auntie Aqua nodded slowly. "I see," she said. "Well, in that case, I'd better let you see it, then." 

"It's here?" Amelia asked, looking around. She didn't see anything different, just the swirling colors and shapes surrounding them like before. 

Auntie Aqua raised her walking stick, and brought it down sharply. "Now!" she called. Upon her word, a small blue-green ball appeared, floating in the air inside a web of magic circles. "Go ahead, Amelia-san," Auntie Aqua said with a grin. 

Slowly, Amelia walked over to the sphere. "This is the.... Claire Bible?" she asked in disbelief, looking down at the small globe. She looked over to Milgasia, who nodded. Amelia gulped, and then turned back to the Claire Bible. Her hand slowly raised, and she placed it on the smooth surface of the ball. 

Next thing Amelia knew, she was standing in a very strange place. Another dimension? Everything was white, with the exception of some strange black blobs all around her. She looked around, confused. 

"Human," a deep voice asked from seemingly all around her, echoing drastically. "Human, what do you wish to know?" 

"You're the Claire Bible?" Amelia asked, covering her mouth when she realized how loud she seemed to speak because of the echo. 

"I am the remaining memories of the Water Dragon King. A flood of infinite knowledge," the voice said. "I am known as the Claire Bible. What else do you wish to know?" 

Amelia took a deep breath. "I need to know why Demon Dragon King Gaav turned against the mazoku," she said. 

"Very well," was the answer. Not two seconds after she heard that, a bright light flashed in front of her eyes. Amelia's hands went to up block the light, but it soon went away, and a strange image filled her mind. There was a red dragon, reared back in anger, along with a blue dragon, as fierce as the red. They began fighting, using powerful laser breath attacks. "It was 1000 years ago, during the War of the Monsters' Fall," the voice said. "The Water Dragon King, defeated by both the Dark Lord and Gaav, used the last bit of his power to imprison the Dark Lord and to seal Gaav into a human body. 

"By having him reborn into a human body, he hoped to rob him of his powers as a mazoku. However, as he was reborn into human form over and over, Gaav's soul merged with the human one, and he turned against the mazoku." 

Amelia tried to take all this in. She knew the Water Dragon King had imprisoned the Dark Lord, but she never knew he'd sealed Gaav into a human body. And then his soul merged with his human soul? Amelia shook her head. There was no way she'd make heads or tails of all this. She'd just tell Lina what the Claire Bible told her. 

"Next question," Amelia said, finding her voice again. "How do you defeat a high-level mazoku?" 

"To defeat a mazoku," the Claire Bible's deep voice answered. "You must posses an even greater source of power." 

Before Amelia could stop herself, she asked, "What sources of power would let you defeat Mazoku Lords?" 

Everything around Amelia seemed to turn pitch black. The Claire Bible said, in its monotonous voice, "To defeat a Dark Lord, you must posses the power of the Lord of Nightmares, or the power of Lord Infinity." 

"Lord Infinity?" Amelia asked. She'd never heard of that Dark Lord before. Then she shook her head, and decided to wait before asking that question. Lina would first want her to find out how to utilize Lord Infinity's power. "What spell lets you use Lord Infinity's power?" she asked, her voice shaky. 

"You cannot _use_ the power of Lord Infinity," the Claire Bible told her. "She grants you possession of her complete power." 

Amelia's breath caught. "So, what's the spell you use to be granted that power?" she managed to ask. A Lord whose power you couldn't use by yourself.... Like the Lord of Nightmares. But was this Lord Infinity more powerful even than the Lord of Nightmares? Or not? 

The deep voice of the Claire Bible cut through her thoughts. "To call upon Lord Infinity, you must recite the chaos words." Then, before Amelia's eyes, rune words flashed in front of her. They stood out against the blackness, shining like gold. And almost before her consciousness could register it, the rune words disappeared. And somehow.... Amelia knew the spell! 

But now that she knew the spell, she wanted to know who Lord Infinity truly was. So she asked, "Tell me all you can about Lord Infinity." 

"Very well." 

A rushing sound ran through Amelia's head, and suddenly it seemed like she was suspended in space! It was beautiful! There were galaxies and stars surrounding her on every side. She couldn't take the time to just look, however, because the Claire Bible began to speak again. 

"Hers is an existence virtually unknown of to this world," the Claire Bible told her. "and much too large to comprehend, but I will tell you what there is to be known." There was a long pause, and for a moment, Amelia was afraid she wouldn't be told about Lord Infinity. But, then... "She is blacker than deepest midnight, and also brighter than the dawn. She is both everything and nothing. She is the creator of peace, and also the true source of chaos. She is the very creator of existence and oblivion. She has dominion over all other Dark Lords. In short, she is Lord Infinity." 

Amelia's eyes were wide with shock by the time the Claire Bible had finished it's monologue. "The... the source of chaos?" she asked breathlessly. Without meaning to, she broke the link between the Claire Bible and herself, not wanting to know anything else the Claire Bible might tell her. 

She was back in the labyrinth dimension again, with Milgasia and Auntie Aqua. She dropped to her knees. "The source of chaos?" she asked again in disbelief. She turned to face Auntie Aqua, who nodded solemnly. "Then, that spell..." Amelia started, but Milgasia confirmed her unspoken thought with a nod of his head. "I.... I can't ever cast this spell," she said quietly, almost to herself. "And I can't let Lina-san know about it, either.... I can't...." 

Milgasia walked over, and helped her to her feet. "We must be going now," he told her, his voice as steady as always. Amelia nodded slowly, and followed Milgasia out of the labyrinth, Auntie Aqua deciding to stay behind with her memories. 

...§...§... 

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**Yes, that's all for now. I actually have the whole thing typed up, but I have found from past experience that you get more reviews if you put up a fic one chapter at a time. So I will be putting up one chapter every Sunday around noon-ish, Eastern Time. Just to let ya know ^^ Now, once again, I don't own Slayers.... Please don't sue me.... Yadda yadda.... etc... etc... So on and so forth.... Read and review, all! ^___^ 

**BTW:** Thanks to Tams (Tamra Chandler) and DS (destructive sorceress) for pre-reading this thing for me. ^^ 


	2. The End of the Demon Dragon King

**Slayers NEXT: Alternate Past**

****

**Disclaimer and Author's Note: **Well, as I promised, here's the next chapter of the ficcie! I don't own Slayers, that would be lots of people in professional companies and stuff. I've been getting lots of comments and stuff, and I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed this for me, and in response to one of them.... I have no clue how Amelia's going to use a powerful dark magic spell when her primary skill is white magic. If she was about to be able to use the Dragon Slave, then that means she's at least capable of using black magic, even if she doesn't specialize in it. Even Sylphiel used a Dragon Slave, and she specializes in white magic, too. So, I guess it doesn't really matter what you specialize in, but you can use some of everything still? I dunno.... Anyway, thanks for reviewing, thanks for reading, and I'm shutting up now. 

**SPOILER WARNING: LOTS OF THIS STUFF ACTUALLY DOES HAPPEN IN THE SERIES, OR IS VERY CLOSE TO WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENS. IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE LAST SIX OR SEVEN EPISODES OF NEXT, YOU MIGHT NOT WANT TO READ THIS AND SPOIL EVERYTHING.**

...§...§... 

Finally, Lina's eyes opened! Zelgadis kept the Recovery spell up for just a moment longer to make sure she was okay, and stopped it when she sat bolt upright, her fist clenched tightly. "Where is Saygram? Lemme at him!" she shouted, standing up. 

Gourry looked over his shoulder at the sound of Lina's voice. "Lina!" he called. She was okay! Thank goodness for Zelgadis, or else-- Gourry wouldn't let those thoughts continue. 

"Gourry, look out!" Zelgadis called. Gourry had allowed himself to be distracted by Lina, and the red sphere took advantage of that. A red bolt of light shot out of the sphere, right at Gourry. Lina and Zelgadis ran over to him just in time for both of them to throw up shields. 

"What the heck are these things?" Lina demanded, watching the balls as they circled their group slowly. 

Zelgadis gritted his teeth, and glared at the spheres. "Mazoku, sent by Saygram," he told her. 

"Mazoku?? These things?" she asked, pointing at one of the spheres. "Come on, how much trouble can these stupid things be??" 

"Quite a lot, actually," Gourry said. 

Lina stomped her feet, and asked loudly, "Have you tried hitting them both at the same time??" 

"It's not that easy!" Zelgadis retorted. "Although," he admitted. "you may have a point...." He drew his sword, and shouted, "_Astral Vine_!" The blade began to glow red with the enchantment. 

"Oh three, Zel?" Gourry asked, grinning. Zelgadis nodded, and each faced the sphere they were going after. "One..." Gourry started. 

"Two..." Zelgadis continued, taking a half-step forward. 

"THREE!" they both shouted as they jumped into their air, descending on the spheres. Their swords made contact at the exact same moment. The spheres split and cracked, bright light shooting out of them, before they exploded. When the smoke cleared away, Lina waved a flag, shouting and whistling. "Way to go! The unstoppable duo!" She slapped Gourry on the back painfully, and said, "Great job, guys!" 

"Owowow!!" Gourry cried when Lina slapped his back. 

"Aw, come on, Gourry, that doesn't hurt you," Lina told him, giving his back another whack. 

"Owww!!" 

Zelgadis sheathed his sword, and looked around. Martina and the little boy were safely cowering behind a bunch of rocks. And... Amelia was coming out of the rock wall with Milgasia! "Amelia!" he called to her. 

Amelia looked up over at them, and for a moment her eyes looked strangely clouded. But it was for such a short moment, and she smiled so brightly as she ran over to them, that Zelgadis figured he'd imagined it. 

"Amelia!" Lina shouted. "So, come on, tell me, what'd the Claire Bible say? How do I defeat any mazoku?" 

Amelia took a deep breath, ready to tell Lina_ almost_ everything, but a spell came hurtling towards them, and they all threw up shields to block it. After the smoke cleared enough, they saw who had cast the spell. 

"Saygram!!" Lina growled. "How _dare_ you attack me like that?? It's unfair! Unjust!" She pointed at Saygram accusingly. 

Amelia gave Lina a sidelong glance. "You're stealing my act again," she informed her tonelessly. 

Saygram just laughed, and floated slowly over to where they were standing. "I'm afraid Xellos won't be showing up any time soon. He's occupied in another dimension." 

"That's not gonna stop be from making you pay for attacking me like that!" Lina shouted at Saygram. "You think you can just attack an innocent girl like that and get away with it?" 

"Innocent girl?" Saygram asked with a derisive laugh. "Surely you don't mean yourself, Lina Inverse." 

Lina gritted her teeth, and clenched her fists, glaring at Saygram. "All right, you asked for it," she said coldly. "_Lord of Darkness of the four worlds, I call upon you! Grant me all the power that you posses!_" 

"What are you planning?" Saygram asked in a superior tone. 

Lina started walking forward slowly, casting her spell. "_Sword of the cold, dark void._" She knew she couldn't control the spell very well, but the last time they fought Saygram, the amplified Dragon Slave hadn't worked. This was more powerful than the Dragon Slave, but she'd have to hope that Saygram stood still so she could cast it. "_Free yourself from the heaven's bonds. Become one with my power, one with my body, and let us walk the path of destruction together._" 

"The Ragna Blade?" Zelgadis asked, watching Lina. 

"But she can barely control it," Amelia said, worried. 

Lina glared icily at Saygram. "_Power that can smash even the souls of the Gods!_" The black blade surrounded by crackling lightning appeared between her hands. 

Saygram, who was about to back away, was stopped suddenly by something large and black jutting out of his chest. Xellos's voice asked, "You thought you could escape me, Saygram-san?" 

"Im-- Impossible!" Saygram choked out. 

Lina took advantage of Saygram being caught still, and charged at him. "_Ragna Blade!_" she shouted, finishing the spell. She brought the black blade down through the air, and through Saygram, splitting him almost in half along his waist. The spell died instantly, and Lina fell to her knees as she watched Saygram disappear, screaming in pain. 

"I still can't control it," she said, gasping from the energy it had taken out of her. She looked up, and saw Xellos standing in front of her, smiling. "You butted in," she told him as she got to her feet. 

"Oh, but you were doing very well, Lina-san," Xellos said to her, still grinning. "As I'd expect--" He broke off, and turned halfway around. Suddenly, something shot out of the air, and Xellos screamed as it ripped through him. The next moment, Gaav appeared, his sword over his shoulder, laughing at Xellos, who was screaming in pain on the ground by Gaav's feet. 

Lina stared in open shock, only semiconscious of Martina screaming in the background. It was Gaav! He was alive! But, Auntie Aqua's attack, back in the desert--!! 

"How do you like that, Xellos?" Gaav asked, grinning in superiority. "I used your own specialty against you. An attack from the Astral Plane." 

Xellos managed to get to his knees. He held his hand over where his arm had once been, his face still smirking around the pain he felt. "I'm flattered... Gaav-sama," he said, his breath coming out in jagged gasps. 

"And yet, even after that attack, you're still very much alive," Gaav said, almost impressed. 

Xellos grimaced. "However, it will take some time for me to recover from this.... my dear Gaav-sama." 

Gaav sheathed his greatsword, and reached down, grabbing Xellos by the collar, and holding him up at least two feet from the ground. "Tell me, Xellos," he said. "What are Hellmaster's plans?" 

"Th-they're..." Xellos began. 

"They're what?" Gaav demanded, shaking Xellos in his impatience. "What are they??" 

Xellos glanced over at the little boy, who was clinging to Martina's arm. Somehow, Xellos found the strength in himself to hold up a finger, and grin at Gaav. "They're a secret," he said, before disappearing. 

Lina stared. "No way! He left now, of all times? How immature can that guy get??" 

Gaav stared at the hand that had been holding Xellos up, and then started to laugh openly. "Typical mazoku. Doesn't care what happens to others just so long as he can save his own skin." 

Amelia, Zelgadis, and Gourry came running up behind Lina. 

Gaav drew his sword again, and glared down at Lina. "I may not know what Hellmaster's plans are, but I know you're part of them. Which means if I'm to stop Hellmaster, I have to kill you!" 

Lina was about to retort, but she broke off, coughing. She dropped to her knees, and stared at her hand when she saw blood on her white gloves. _It's no good_, she thought. _It's because I used the Ragna Blade on Saygram. I don't have any strength left for Gaav._

Gourry stepped forward, sword drawn, and said boldly to Gaav, "You think I'm just going to stand here and let you do that?" 

Amelia and Zelgadis came forward as well, standing half in front of Lina. "Me either," Amelia said. "Lina-san is our friend!" 

"And unlike Xellos," Zelgadis said, holding his hands ready to cast a spell. "We're human." 

Lina stared in awed amazement at her friend. "Gourry... Guys...." They were facing Gaav to help her? 

However, Gaav just seemed to find it all very amusing. He laughed, a short, rough bark, and asked them, "You really are fools. You challenge me when you know you have no chance of winning!" 

"Shut up," Zelgadis said coldly. "We're fighting for our lives here!" 

Gaav laughed again. "For your lives, huh? Just like I'm fighting for my life against Hellmaster. We're not so different, you and I." 

Zelgadis said quietly to Lina, "Lina, no matter how big we talk, we know we don't have a chance against this guy." 

"You have to use that spell you used to defeat Saygram," Amelia told her. 

Gourry smiled down at her. "We'll keep Gaav distracted long enough for you to recover your strength, Lina." 

"Gourry..." She couldn't think of anything to say. She was touched that she had such loyal friends on her side. 

Gourry brought his sword up in a defensive stance, ready to go. 

"What an interesting sword you have there," Gaav admitted. "But even that won't help you here. Very well! Fight me, if you dare! For the sake of your own lives!" With that last shout, he jumped backwards into a large clearing, with Zelgadis, Gourry, and Amelia right after him. 

"_Rah Tilt_!" Zelgadis and Amelia shouted in unison as soon as their feet touched the ground. The white pillar of light surrounded Gaav. But moments later, the light shattered like glass, and Gaav was revealed, standing unscathed. 

He let out another bark of laughter. "It's useless. The Rah Tilt did cause me some pain, but I was able to defend against it," he told them. 

Gourry leapt at him from behind, but Gaav just grabbed the blade of the Sword of Light. "Even a human wielding the sword Gorun Nova stands no chance against me!" he shouted as he threw Gourry into the side of the cliff. Gourry disappeared within a cascading avalanche of rock and dust. 

"Gourry!" Lina cried out, trying to crawl over to him on her knees. She broke off, coughing. "I can't do anything," she said in frustration. 

Zelgadis and Gourry both charged at Gaav, their swords drawn. Gaav just blasted them backwards with a wave of his hand, sending them crashing into a boulder. Gourry felt the taste of blood in his mouth, and even Zelgadis had blood running down the side of his face. 

Then, to make things worse, Amelia had climbed up on a rock, and threw a Dynast Bras at Gaav. Gaav laughed, and brushed it aside. "What kind of pathetic spell was that?" he asked, turning to look at Amelia. 

Amelia pointing down at him, glaring. "You're a villain, a menace to this world!" She posed dramatically. "You must repent your evil ways, or face the wrath of our justice!" She shot another pose. "Now is the time for retribution!" One more pose. "Prepare yourself!" 

...§...§... 

"Amelia, what are you doing....?" Lina asked herself. She broke off coughing again, and then heard footsteps behind her. She looked over her shoulder, and saw Milgasia kneeling beside her. 

"I'll heal you now," Milgasia told her. He held up his hand, which started glowing with a bright white light. "I'm sorry for the delay." 

Lina just smiled gratefully. "Milgasia-san... Thank you." 

Gaav chuckled. "Are you finished yet?" he asked Amelia. "Now you listen to me! So long as Lina is knowingly helping Hellmaster's plans, which are the source of evil in this world, your good friend is a villain!" 

Amelia stared, shocked. "Lina-san.... a.... villain....?" 

"And as her companion," Gaav went on. "That must make you a villain as well!" 

Amelia froze, her mind confused with all the complexities. "I'm.... a villain? No.... that..... can't be...." Her eyes filled with tears. "I can't be...." 

...§...§... 

"I think Amelia's in trouble," Gourry said, getting to his feet. 

"Oh, great..." Zelgadis got to his feet as well, and headed towards Amelia. 

...§...§... 

"I hate people who foolishly preach justice," Gaav said, a spell swirling around him. "In the end, there is no good and evil. Just power, and those strong enough to use it." 

Amelia regained her composure enough to start a spell, but was too late. By the time she started to say "Rah Tilt," Gaav had teleported to just behind her, his sword already swinging down. Amelia gasped, and looked over her shoulder. Before Gaav's sword could even touch her, Zelgadis jumped between them, grabbing Amelia in both arms. The sword cut into his back. Zelgadis screamed in pain, and the two of them were knocked off the tall rock. 

Amelia grimaced, and opened her eyes. Zelgadis was unconscious beneath her, his arm still around her back. She sat up, her eyes filling with tears. "Zelgadis-san!" she shouted, shaking him a little. "Zelgadis-san! Hang on!" She lifted her hands slowly and stared at them in shock. They were covered in blood. Zelgadis's blood. He'd tried to help her. She quickly started to cast a Recovery spell to help him. "Please don't die, please don't die," she said quietly to herself over and over. 

Gourry charged at Gaav in anger for attacking Zelgadis and Amelia, but he was knocked back easily, and fell to the ground with enough force to knock him unconscious. 

"Don't you see?" Gaav asked loudly. Amelia sat staring up at him, her teeth chattering. "No matter how 'just' you consider yourselves to be, in the face of overwhelming power, you're defenseless." 

Lina stood up, having enough strength to fight now, and started to walk slowly over to Gaav. As she walked past Gourry, she looked down at him, and then over at Zelgadis and Amelia. She then glared up at Gaav, and said, "I can't forgive you for this." 

"You ready to fight back, Lina Inverse?" Gaav asked. He held his sword up in an attack stance, and shouted, "Go ahead and try!!" 

Once again, Lina cast her talisman amplification spell. "_Lord of Darkness of the four worlds, I call upon you! Grant me all the power that you posses!_" Then, still walking forward slowly, she began her spell. "_Sword of the cold, dark void. Free yourself from the heaven's bonds. Become one with my power, one with my body, and let us walk the path of destruction together. Power that can smash even the souls of the Gods! Ragna Blade!!_" 

As if Lina shouting that had been a cue, Gourry and Zelgadis both regained consciousness, and they and Amelia watched Lina as she glared at Gaav. 

_Even with the talismans, it's taking all my strength to control the blade,_ Lina thought. "All right, Gaav!! I'm betting everything.... on this one attack!" She began running forward, shouting. She leapt into the air, and yelled, "Blade of Darkness!!!" She brought the spell swinging through the air, and it struck Gaav's greatsword. She glared at him, forcing her spell down with all the strength she possessed. Gaav was also hard-pressed, trying to push Lina's spell back. 

At last, the Ragna Blade cut through Gaav's own sword, and started to cut into Gaav's shoulder. Gaav cast aside the remains of his sword, and grabbed Lina's arms, trying to keep the blade from cutting any deeper into him. Lina just kept pushing down with more and more strength. Gaav's grip on her arms tightened, and she felt something crack beneath his hands. Lina screamed in pain, and brought the Ragna Blade down in a sweeping cut, splitting Gaav from his shoulder to the opposite hip. She was thrown backwards by Gaav, and right into the cliff face, falling to the ground in a pile of rocks. She watched as Gaav disappeared, yelling in pain. 

For a long while, all Lina could do was stare at where Gaav had been, and try to breathe. Finally, everything seemed to register in her mind. "I... won?" she asked herself quietly. "I won!" She looked up at a sound from above her, and saw a solitary golden dragon take off into the sky. "Thank you.... Milgasia-san," she said quietly. She turned to face the other way, and saw Gourry, Zelgadis, and Amelia walking towards her. Gourry and Zelgadis were each supporting the other. "Gourry... Guys!" Lina said happily. They were all okay! 

Amelia ran up, and hugged Lina tightly. "Lina-san!" she shouted. 

Lina hugged her back. "Amelia... Thank goodness you're okay." 

...§...§... 

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:** See? Lina's dandy! I won't kill of any main characters, that's just mean, and completely against the way the Slayers people would think. Gotta try to think along the same lines as them. I hope I'm doing a good job of this so far. I'm really proud of the chant I thought of for the spell ^^ You don't get to see it until the end, though. Sorry.... Maybe I shouldn't even have brought it up.... Oh well! ^_____^ Thanks for reading and reviewing, and see y'all next week! 


	3. Hellmaster's Dramatic Appearance

**Slayers NEXT: Alternate Past**

****

**Disclaimer and Author's Note**: I'MSORRYI'MSORRYI'MSORRYI'MSORRYI'MSORRY!!! I haven't updated in LONG TIME!!!!! But I have a GOOD REASON!!!!! You see, first I was stuck for a week at my gramma's house, and aside from not having the files for this fic, she also has an uver-slow dial-up connection. It's supposed to be 64K, but she's lucky if she gets 26!!! GAK!!! And THEN, after THAT, I went to Texas for three weeks! I hadn't seen my buddies there for over a year, I'm sure you can understand that! But now, I'm back, and I'm updating! I'm even doing two chapters this time to make up for lack of recent updates. Okay? ^^;; Forgive me? Peace? 

**SPOILER WARNING: LOTS OF THIS STUFF ACTUALLY DOES HAPPEN IN THE SERIES, OR IS VERY CLOSE TO WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENS. IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE LAST SIX OR SEVEN EPISODES OF NEXT, YOU MIGHT NOT WANT TO READ THIS AND SPOIL EVERYTHING.**

...§...§... 

Martina, her face still hidden against the rock, asked quietly, "Little boy? What happened? What's going on?" When there was no response, she looked around. "Little boy?" she asked. "Where are you?" She didn't see him anywhere! 

...§...§... 

Everyone settled themselves around Lina, glad to just be able to sit and relax. When Lina started to get up, Gourry pushed her gently back, and said, "Don't move, Lina. Just relax a little longer." He tousled her hair affectionately. 

Lina didn't know what else to say. She just smiled up at him gratefully. 

"You really are one in a million," Zelgadis told her. Not many sorcerers could have defeated one of the Dark Lords under Shabranigdo. Lina just flashed him the victory sign as a response. 

Amelia looked off towards their battlefield. "Do you think Gaav really is...?" she began. 

"Come on," Gourry said. "Nobody can stand up to a spell like that." 

"I guess you're right," Amelia laughed. 

Martina came scrambling towards them, crying. "Guys! Something awful happened!" She dropped to her knees, gasping for breath. 

"Martina?" Lina asked. "What happened?" 

"That little boy..." Martina said between gasping breaths. "He disappeared!" 

"Wasn't he with you?" Lina asked, looking around for the boy too. 

Martina nodded. "He was, up until just a short while ago!" 

Their conversation broke off when there was the sound of rock cracking off to the side of them, towards the battlefield. Every one of them turned to look to see what had made the sound. There was a moment of silence that seemed to stretch on forever, before a large rock splintered into pieces, revealing the Demon Dragon King Gaav!! 

Martina screamed. "I THOUGHT YOU KILLED HIM!!!" she shrieked. 

Everyone else just stared. Gaav was alive! Lina's Ragna Blade didn't seem to even have an effect on him at all! 

Making up his mind, Gourry picked up Lina, and stood up. She blushed, and asked, "G-gourry...?" 

"Don't worry, Lina," Gourry said confidently. "I know exactly what to do!" 

Lina nodded. 

"Everybody run!" Gourry shouted, doing exactly that. Lina grabbed him around his neck to keep her balance. Zelgadis and Amelia were running right behind them. 

"Move it, Martina!" Zelgadis shouted over his shoulder at Martina, who was lagging behind. Martina just burst into tears and tried to run faster. 

Behind them. Gaav charged up a spell, and threw it at them. His aim was slightly off, and he blew up the ground just behind Lina and the others, but they did have to stop and shield themselves against the onslaught of dust and rock that was blown their way. 

"Heh. You thought that you, a mere human, could kill the Demon Dragon King Gaav?" Gaav asked, his voice full of superiority. 

Before Gaav could say another word, however, he broke off with a choke. Black blood exploded out of his mouth, chest, and back. He looked around wildly with just his eyes, and saw the little boy sitting on top of a tall rock, pointing down at him. "Why you little...!!" he started. "When did you get here?" 

The little boy laughed menacingly. "I've been here all along," he said to Gaav. "Taking a child's form is so convenient. Nobody even suspected me. Only Xellos seemed to recognize me for who I truly was." 

Lina glared up at the little boy. "Who...?" she started to asked. 

"Oh, that's right," the little boy said, smiling down at them. "I never told you my name, did I? It is Phibrizzo! But you can call me Hellmaster!" 

Amelia stared openly, and pointed. "This little boy is Hellmaster??" she asked incredulously. 

"Another mazoku??" Martina shouted. She suddenly went very faint. "Ah.... Another mazoku...." Then she passed out from the shock. 

Hellmaster Phibrizzo smiled, and stood up. "Everything happened just the way I'd predicted it would. Even Gaav showed up just when I predicted he would." Phibrizzo teleported over to a different rock, just in front of Gaav. "I had originally thought that I could tear the human part out of you," Phibrizzo told Gaav, still grinning childishly. "But you'd never be a full mazoku again. And knowing that, I doubt very much you would swear your loyalty to me." 

"You little--" 

"And that leaves me with only one choice," Phibrizzo went on, interrupting Gaav. "And that's to kill you outright!" Then he started laughing. He raised his hand, and snapped his fingers. A spell surrounded Gaav, with him screaming in pain. The spell slowly contracted, until there was nothing left of either it or Gaav. 

Lina and the others stared at Phibrizzo. "That's impossible!" Zelgadis shouted. 

"A Dark Lord Lina-san couldn't kill with the Ragna Blade, he did in a second," Amelia said slowly in disbelief. 

Lina glared at Phibrizzo. "What is it you want with me?" she demanded to know. 

Phibrizzo stood up and smiled down at them all. "I let it slip out to Gaav's servants that I was planning something that had to do with Lina Inverse," he said. "That's how this all started. But, really, that was only half of the truth. My plan really involved one of Lina's companions." 

Lina gasped, and looked over her shoulder at where Gourry, Zelgadis, Amelia, and Martina were standing, in shocked silence. She turned to look back at Phibrizzo. 

"That's right," Phibrizzo went on. "I don't need you, Lina Inverse. The one I need is Amelia Wil Tesla Seyruun." 

Everyone turned to stare at Amelia, who was as wide-eyed as everyone else. "M-me?" she stammered. "But what can _I_ do?" 

Zelgadis glared up at Phibrizzo. "What do you want with her?" he demanded, his hand tightly in a fist. 

"I would have thought that would be obvious," Phibrizzo said, grinning. "Especially to Amelia, who has touched the true Claire Bible." 

Amelia thought back to all the Claire Bible had told her. 

"To destroy everything. That is the true goal of the mazoku," Phibrizzo said. 

Amelia gasped, her eyes wide. Lord Infinity, the source of all chaos, could destroy the world easily. And that spell--! She was the only one who knew that spell! Phibrizzo wanted her to use that to destroy the world? 

"However," Phibrizzo continued, a dark cloud forming above him. "You're in no condition right now to grant my request." 

Martina clenched her fist. "Mazoku, mazoku, mazoku!" she shouted angrily. "I've had my tender heart ripped to shreds by your filthy race!" She stalked over to where Phibrizzo was standing. 

"Martina, stop!" everyone else shouted, but Martina wasn't listening. 

"Now face the wrath of the monstrous Zoamelgustar-sama!" Martina shouted, jumping up at Phibrizzo, her talisman held out in her hand. There was a bright flash of light, and Martina was thrown backwards to the ground by a blue shield surrounding Hellmaster. 

Phibrizzo laughed again. "Out of respect for 'Zoamelgustar-sama,' I'll spare you. My dear 'big sister.'" 

Martina glared up at Phibrizzo, tears in her eyes. "You're inhuman! Even for a non human!" she cried. 

Phibrizzo's eyes wandered across the group of beaten-up, tired travelers. His gaze stopped on Zelgadis, who was glaring up at him, his hands ready to cast a spell. "Oh, yes, you'll do nicely," Phibrizzo said, snapping his fingers again. Black smoke shot up from the ground, surrounding Zelgadis on all sides, and wrapping around him. 

"Zelgadis-san!" Amelia shouted. 

"Zel!" 

Phibrizzo started to float away. Zelgadis, who was almost completely wrapped up in the black spell, was dragged along with him in the air, struggling against it. 

Amelia started running, chasing after them, her hand stretched up as if she could grab Zelgadis away. "Zelgadis-san!" she shouted, tears stinging her eyes as Phibrizzo got higher and higher in the sky. "Zelgadis-san!! ZELGADIS-SAN!!!" 

"AMEL--" Zelgadis started to shout, but was cut off when Phibrizzo disappeared, taking him along. 

Amelia dropped to her knees, staring up at the sky where Zelgadis had disappeared. "Zelgadis-san.... No...." Tears streamed down her face. She was aware that Lina and Gourry were standing behind her, looking up as well. 

All of them heard Phibrizzo's last message as it echoed from subspace. "If you want him back, come to my city. Yes, come to Sairaag." 

Amelia's head whirled. Zelgadis was kidnapped. Hellmaster wanted to destroy the world. He wanted her to do it! Zelgadis was gone! Everything was going wrong! It wasn't supposed to be her! It wasn't supposed to be Zelgadis! Finally, Amelia couldn't handle it. She collapsed from the shock of too much happening too fast. 

...§...§... 

_"But who's he? He's so creepy and suspicious-looking!" Amelia cried, pointing a shaky hand at Zelgadis._

__...__

_Amelia and Zelgadis stood at the battle site at the base of Flagoon, fighting Copy Rezo. They chanted the Rah Tilt together, and when it fired off, for a fleeting moment, it flashed in the shape of a heart._

__...__

_It was just after the Brass Rackets competition, and Amelia and Xellos had won the trophy. Amelia approached Zelgadis, and held up the trophy. "Here, you wanted to see this," she said to him, smiling. Zelgadis looked down at her, and smiled. His hands covered hers as he took the trophy from her. "Thank you."_

__...__

_Gaav appeared right behind Amelia, his sword raised. Gaav's sword swung down, but Zelgadis jumped between them, holding onto Amelia with both hands, taking the strike meant for Amelia._

__...__

_Zelgadis was being taken away by Phibrizzo! Amelia chased after him from the ground, but she couldn't reach him. "Zelgadis-san! Zelgadis-san! ZELGADIS-SAN!!" she screamed. "AMEL--" _

__...__

_"Amelia," Zelgadis said, his voice soft and gentle, smiling at her. Slowly, he began to fade away into darkness..._

__...__

__"Zelgadis-san!" Amelia shouted, sitting bolt upright in bed, grabbing at her blankets. Her breathing was heavy, and she looked around her room wildly. Her grip tightened on her blanket, and she bowed her head. "A dream...." she said quietly, her voice slightly choked. A tear slid down her cheek and dropped onto her blanket. 

Silently, Amelia got out of bed. She stepped into her slippers, and went over to the dressing table at they inn they were staying at. After pouring the cold water from the pitcher into the basin, she splashed her face, waking herself up and washing away the tear stains on her cheeks. After she dried her face, she thought, _I guess I just got attached to Zelgadis-san._ She sat down, and started running a brush through her hair. _After all, we've been through a lot together. We defeated Copy Rezo. Kanzel and Mazenda, too. We've traveled half of everywhere. I even got to dress him up like a girl,_ she laughed. _The four of us have all been together so long, it's only natural I'd get used to him being here. _

Amelia set the brush down on the vanity, and pushed her stool slightly away. "But..." she said, her voice strained. "I never thought his being gone would hurt this much...." Her hands balled into fists, and she fought back against the burning in her eyes. "I miss him so much!" Tears streamed freely down her face, falling into her lap. "It hurts so much," she cried, her throat tight. Her eyes closed tightly, and she gripped the edge of her seat. "Zelgadis-san!" 

Her shoulders shook and her voice came out in ragged gasps while she cried. 

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:** That's always been one of my favorite parts in NEXT... Lina dreaming about Gourry after he's gone. So sad... *sniffle* Poor Ame-chan!!! *huggles her nonexistant Ame plushie* Like I said, I'm gonna put up the next chapter too. Go me! 


	4. Fighting Zelgadis!

**Slayers NEXT: Alternate Past**

****

**Disclaimer and Author's Note:**Like I promised, here's the other chapter I'm uploading today. By the way, just as a shameless insert, you should read my other new fics. I have two of them that you should really read. "Dark Memories" is a Slayers/Kenshin crossover type thing. It's the Slayers in a time of war, and Lina's the assassin person. You don't need to have seen Kenshin to read the fic, trust me, The other one is "Slayers FIGHT" (original, I know) which is yet another sequel to Slayers TRY. Gak, you'd think I could be a little more creative, right? *siiiigh* 

...§...§... 

"GOOD MORNING!!" Amelia shouted as she ran down the stairs. She smiled brightly at Lina and Gourry, who were in the middle of their breakfast, and then over at Martina, who was staring at Lina and Gourry in disgust. 

Lina instantly put down her breakfast burrito, and looked up at Amelia. Her voice was sincere when she asked, "Are you okay, Amelia?" 

Amelia nodded, smiling. "Yeah, I'm fine," she answered. 

Lina looked at her, very unsure as to the truth of that statement. "I guess the question now is what we're going to do," she said. 

Martina slammed her fist on the table. "What do you mean? I say we charge in there and give that Hellmaster a piece of our minds!! My sensitive heart has been ripped to pieces by those conniving mazoku!" 

Lina looked over at Martina through the corners of her eyes. "That's not what I meant." 

"Oh..." 

"You want some coffee, Amelia?" Gourry asked, holding up the morning pot that was on their table. 

"No thanks," Amelia said, shaking her head. "That's more Zelgadis-san's thing. You should ask him if he wants--" She broke off suddenly. She looked over at the empty chair next to her where Zelgadis would normally have sat. Her eyes dropped, and she stared at the table in front of her. 

"Amelia... You..." Martina said slowly, but never finished what she said. 

Amelia took a ragged breath. "Lina-san, I don't know what to do," she admitted. "Going to Sairaag and casting your Dragon Slave or my Rah Tilt won't help Zelgadis-san. And also," she went on, before Lina could say anything in response. "Phibrizzo never did say that he'd let Zelgadis-san go if I went! What if we go there, and he kills Zelgadis-san anyway??" She stopped, and dropped her head into her hands. "The best thing to do for Zelgadis-san would be for us to never go there. Then, at the very least, he wouldn't die...." 

Amelia looked up when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She saw Lina smiling at her determinedly. "Don't worry, Amelia," she said. "We'll get Zel back. We'll go to Sairaag, and we'll do what needs to be done." 

"Yeah," Gourry said. "We aren't gonna give up on Zel! He needs us!" 

Amelia looked back and forth between her friends, an incredulous smile on her face. "Lina-san! Gourry-san!" 

Lina nodded, and said, "We'll go to Sairaag, and we'll get Zel. Trust me. Okay?" She winked, and held out her fist in the center of the table. Amelia nodded in determination, and covered Lina's hand with hers. Gourry's hand was soon to follow, and, to their disappointment, Martina's. 

"We'll all go to Sairaag and make that Hellmaster pay for what he did to me!" Martina proclaimed. Then she smiled down at Amelia, and said, "And I guess we can save Zelgadis while we're there." 

"There's just one thing I want to know," Lina said. She turned to Amelia. "What does Hellmaster want with you?" 

Amelia sighed, and looked at the table again. "He wants me to--" 

"Wait, stop!" Gourry said suddenly. Everyone turned to look at him. "Maybe we don't need to know what Phibuzzard wants." 

"It's Phibrizzo, you jellyfish," Lina said. "And what do you mean we don't need to know?" 

"Well..." Gourry continued slowly, as if he was still thinking through what he wanted to say. "If we find out what he wants Amelia to do, and we don't like it, we might try to stop her. Even if it means leaving Zel there. And I don't want to leave Zel." 

Lina nodded. "You're actually right for once, Gourry." She turned to Amelia. "I don't want to know, either, Amelia." She smiled then. "I just hope you do the right thing when the time comes." 

Amelia nodded slowly, full of a newfound appreciation for her friends and their loyalty. 

...§...§... 

Lina, Gourry, Amelia, and Martina were on the road again. Their destination: Sairaag. The last time they had been to Sairaag, they'd fought against Copy Rezo, and almost half the city had been blown apart. And here they were, going to Sairaag again for another battle. 

The four of them walked in silence. That is, until three rough-looking men stepped onto the trail from the bushes. "All right," they said, holding up their clubs and swords. "Hand over all your money if you want to live." 

"Hmm?" Lina asked, much too sweetly. "You're bandits, aren't you?" 

"Yeah, so what if we are?" the biggest man said, pressing his face almost right up against Lina's. 

"Oh, in that case!" Lina backed up, a grin on her face. "_Fireball_!!" She blew up the big man in front of her, and looked at the last two. "You two still want my money?" she asked, brushing her hands together. 

With a greedy look on his face, one of them said, "You bet we do!" 

Lina nodded, and shouted, "_Dil Brand_!" The two bandits were blasted into the air, and landed back on the ground, charred and smoking. She leaned over and smiled down at them. "Banditry is a crime, you know." Then she proceeded to take the bandits' belt pouches. 

"Lina-san, do you really have to do this?" Amelia asked. 

"Of course!" Lina said, stuffing the bags in her cape. "Bandits are bad guys! Bad guys have to be punished!" 

There was a rustling off in the bushes. 

"But it looks like one of them wasn't punished yet!" Lina shouted. "_Burst Rondo!_" The spell flew off into the bushes. There was a yelp of pain, and the person went soaring through the air, and landed on the trail right near them. Everyone there stared. "S-Sylphiel??" Lina asked incredulously. 

Sylphiel, slightly burnt, laughed nervously. "Hello, Lina-san.... Amelia-san.... Gourry-sama.... How nice to see you again...." She then fell over in a heap, her clothes still smoking a little. 

...§...§... 

After Sylphiel woke up again, Lina was quick to apologize. "Sorry about that, Sylphiel. I thought you were a stray bandit...." she said. 

Sylphiel shook her head. "No, that's okay. I was careless." She turned to smile at Gourry. "Gourry-sama! You're doing well?" 

Gourry nodded. "Yeah, we're all good." 

Martina whispered to Amelia, "You know this person?" Amelia nodded, but didn't elaborate. 

Sylphiel stood up again, and asked, "So where are you all off to?" 

"Sairaag," Lina said, her face suddenly very serious. 

Sylphiel detected the sudden change, and asked, "What's wrong?" She looked from one person to the next, and noticed something. "Zelgadis-san isn't with you. Where's he gone to?" 

"_That's_ why we're going to Sairaag," Lina said. With a sigh, she told Sylphiel, "You might want to sit down for this...." And she proceeded to explain everything that had happened with Gaav and Hellmaster Phibrizzo up until that point. 

"I see," Sylphiel said when Lina finished. "So Hellmaster has kidnapped Zelgadis-san to try to lure you all to Sairaag?" 

Lina nodded. "Yeah, basically." 

"Actually," Sylphiel said. "I was on my way to Sairaag as well." 

"Why are you going to Sairaag, Sylphiel?" Gourry asked her. 

Sylphiel looked up. "I've heard strange rumors. People say that the city is rebuilt. They also they that the tree has died!" 

"You mean that giant tree?" Lina asked. 

"Yes," Sylphiel said. "The Holy Tree Flagoon." 

Amelia spoke for the first time in a long while. "They must mean it fell or it was cut down, right?" 

Sylphiel shook her head, and said, "No. They say it appears to have died. Do you think it has anything to do with Hellmaster Phibrizzo kidnapping Zelgadis-san and luring you all to Sairaag?" 

"Probably," Lina admitted. 

Sylphiel stood up, and said determinedly, "Let me come with you, Lina-san! I want to see if the rumors are true!" 

Lina nodded, and said, "Sure, why not." 

...§...§... 

They were now a party of five as they set out again for Sairaag. Sylphiel and Gourry were chatting, catching up on old news, Sylphiel's eyes full of adoration for her 'Gourry-sama.' Suddenly, Sylphiel broke away from Gourry, and went over to Lina. "Lina-san," she whispered. "You told me once that you only traveled with Gourry-sama because of his Sword of Light. Is that still true?" 

Lina blinked. "Of course. What other reason for hanging around that jellyfish would I have?" she asked. 

"Well, in that case," Sylphiel started. "Then I--" 

Gourry suddenly stopped dead in his tracks. "Get back!" he shouted to the others. But before they could move, a spell exploded around them, knocking trees down and raising a cloud of dust. 

Lina's head popped out of the tree. "Jeez! What is it this time??" she shouted angrily. 

"Why does this always happen to us?" Martina cried, just before a tree branch fell on top of her head. 

"You should have come alone, Amelia," Phibrizzo's voice said from somewhere. 

Amelia looked around. "Where are you? What are you doing?" 

"Well, it was much too boring just sitting at Sairaag waiting for you all," Phibrizzo's voice answered. "So I decided to make your journey a little more interesting." 

It was then that they all noticed a man in the clearing ahead of them. He was caped and cloaked, the hood shadowing his face so they couldn't see him. "You can fight him. I'm sure it'll make for more fun." 

"Getting to Zelgadis-san is our first priority!" Amelia shouted. 

"Don't count on us getting distracted by this guy so easily!" Lina added. "We'll beat your man and get on our way." 

Phibrizzo laughed. "Very well. Don't go easy on him. I assure you, he won't go easy on you." 

"All right!" Lina shouted. "Let's get this on! _Fireball_!!" She threw the spell at the caped man, who just threw up a shield easily. "A sorcerer, huh?" she asked. 

"_Flare Lance_!!" Amelia shouted. The sorcerer again put up a shield. This time, he responded with an attack. A Fireball shot out of his hands, right at the others. 

"He can cast a spell without saying anything?" Lina asked incredulously after the smoke from the Fireball cleared away. "Grr! Let's try this, then. _Disfang_!" The shadow lunged for the sorcerer, but the sorcerer wordlessly cast a light spell. The shadow disappeared in the bright light. 

"Rah Tilt!" Amelia cast. 

The sorcerer drew his sword, which started to glow red, just like Zelgadis's. He swung his sword at the spell, dashing it away easily. 

"No way!" Martina shrieked. 

Sylphiel ran ahead, saying, "It's my turn now! _Flare Arrow_!!" The spell shot of, and died halfway to the sorcerer, who looked over his shoulder at Sylphiel. Sylphiel blushed bright red. 

Gourry ran up in front of Sylphiel, his Sword of Light drawn. He lunged at the sorcerer, swinging wide and low. His sword was parried, and the sorcerer darted in to attack Gourry right back. Gourry jumped out of the way of the enchanted sword. 

"Move, Gourry-san!" Amelia shouted, as she ran up, ready to cast a spell. "_Elmekia Lance_!" 

The sorcerer raised his sword, and repelled the spell right back at Amelia. She screamed, and ducked out of the way. "Lina-saaaannn!" she cried. "What are we supposed to do? He keeps repelling all our spells!!" 

Lina stood up, and dragged Gourry to his feet by his hair. "Run for it, guys!" She heard Martina and Amelia running along behind her, so she started her spell. "_Darkness beyond twilight, crimson beyond blood that flows. Buried in the flow of time. In thy great name I pledge myself to darkness. Let all the fools who stand before me be destroyed by the power you and I posses. Dragon Slave_!!" She shot the spell straight towards the sorcerer. 

The sorcerer brought his sword up again, and-- The Dragon Slave disappeared!?!? 

"He absorbed it with his enchanted sword!!" Lina shouted in disbelief. 

Then the sorcerer swung his sword down sharply, the Dragon Slave exploding out of the blade. Lina, Sylphiel, and Amelia all cast shield spells, and even those were blown aside, and they were all knocked to the ground. 

The sorcerer walked through the clearing smoke, and stopped when he reached Amelia. He raised his sword up, the tip pointing straight down at Amelia. Amelia's eyes widened, and she stared up at the sorcerer. What were they supposed to do? Even the Dragon Slave didn't work. The sorcerer prepared to thrust his sword downwards, and Amelia's eyes got even wider in fear. The sorcerer suddenly backed up, holding his head as if he was in pain. He staggered a little, then shook his head. He glared down at Amelia again, and lifted his sword. Just as he brought his sword down in a blow that would have killed Amelia, she was picked up by someone extremely fast, and just as quickly deposited back on the ground in a safe place. 

"What are _you_ doing here??" Lina shouted when she saw who had just come to Amelia's rescue. 

Zangulus looked over at Lina. "I see you're all up to your necks in trouble again," he said. "Gourry, there you are." 

Lina stared at Zangulus. "Don't tell me you've followed us all this way just to duel with Gourry again!!!" 

Blushing and turning away, Zangulus muttered, "So what if I did?" 

Amelia pointed to the sorcerer, and said, "You can't fight Gourry-san right now, but this guy is a good swordsman." 

"Heh. Fine. I'll fight him," Zangulus said in a tone that obviously said he was doing them a favor. He drew his own sword, and glared at the sorcerer. "Howling Sword, part two!" he shouted, his sword vibrating slightly in his grip. 

Zangulus and the sorcerer both faced each other steadily. Then, on some unspoken word, they both charged forward, their swords striking powerfully. Both of them pivoted on the balls of their feet, and faced each other, launching straight into attacks. The sorcerer blocked all of Zangulus's spells, and vice versa. 

But now that Zangulus had him in one spot, Lina could use the Ragna Blade. "_Power that can smash even the souls of the Gods_!" she shouted. "Move, Zangulus!" Zangulus jumped out of the way as Lina yelled, "_Ragna Blade_!" Her spell's blade and the sorcerer's enchanted blade met. There was an enormous explosion of light. Lina and the sorcerer were both thrown backwards, in opposite directions. 

Lina crashed to the ground, Amelia and Gourry by her side a moment later. "Lina, are you okay?" Gourry asked. 

"Yeah, fine," Lina said, getting back to her feet. They all looked over at the sorcerer, who was regaining his feet, his back to them. 

"His hood," Zangulus pointed out. "It's fallen back." 

They all waited in anticipation to see the face of their enemy. The sorcerer turned around slowly, and everyone gasped. 

"Zelgadis-san!!" Amelia shouted. There was no mistaking it. Their enemy was Zelgadis. Amelia started to run over to Zelgadis, but Lina grabbed her arm and stopped her. "Lina-san," Amelia protested. 

Lina shook her head. "No, Amelia. Look. He's been completely taken over. By Hellmaster Phibrizzo." 

From out of nowhere, Phibrizzo's voice could be heard again. "Looks like you know who you're fighting now. Too bad. And now that you know, I doubt you will fight him any more. Still, it made the journey more interesting. I'll be waiting for you, in Sairaag." 

Zelgadis was surrounded once again by black energy. Amelia broke free of Lina's grip, and ran towards him. "Zelgadis-san!" she shouted. She had to reach him before he could be taken away again. "Zelgadis-san!!" She reached him just as he disappeared in a whirl of cloud. She sank to her knees, tears stinging her eyes. He was taken away from her again. Amelia was suddenly filled with an anger like she'd never felt before. She'd make Phibrizzo pay. Her hands clenched into fists. She'd stop at nothing to make sure Zelgadis was never taken away from her again. She would defeat Hellmaster. 

...§...§... 

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:** That's another sad part. When they hafta fight Gourry... *sniffle* Poor Gourry-kun!! But this time, they had to fight Zelly! Which is worse, 'cause I like Zel better!!! Poor Zel... Poor Amelia... ANYWAY!! Now, I'm gonna get back to my regular update schedule. The next update will be this Sunday, and I'll keep updating every Sunday, just like I was supposed to. 

**Y to K Joke**

"I don't understand all this Y2K stuff, but I'm pretty sure I'm prepared for it. I fixed my 2000 calendar so that all the months read Janurak, Februark, Mak, Julk, etc..." 


	5. Regenerated City of Sairaag

**Slayers NEXT: Alternate Past**

****

**Author's Note and Disclaimer:** Whoopsie. So much for keeping to a schedule. Guess I'll make the perfect webcomic artist, huh? ^^;;;; Anyway, I apologize from the bottom of my heart. Really, I do. I don't wanna loose loyal readers and reviewers because I'm a lazy bum and don't feel like updating. I'm sure y'all can understand when the fic isn't finished, and I'm hard-pressed to write more chapters, but this stupid fic is done already!! Even _I_ can't forgive me. I hope you can, though. Cause y'all love me, right? ^___^ Everyone loves me. How could you _not_ love me? ^_____^ Anyway, here's the next chapter. Sorry for the delay. 

**SPOILER WARNING: A LOT OF THIS STUFF HAPPENS OR IS VERY CLOSE TO WHAT HAPPENS IN THE SERIES. IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE LAST BUNCHA EPISODES OF NEXT, YOU MIGHT NOT WANT TO READ THIS.**

That night, the six of them... Lina, Gourry, Amelia, Martina, Sylphiel, and Zangulus ...all sat around a table at a tavern. 

"So why did Hellmaster kidnap Zelgadis?" Zangulus asked, sipping his coffee. 

"He wants me to do something for him," Amelia said. She was staring into the flame of the candle in the center of their table. 

Zangulus looked at her questioningly. "In exchange for Zelgadis's life?" 

Amelia looked away. If she cast that spell... the whole universe would be destroyed. She couldn't cast it. She wouldn't ! 

Lina covered up Amelia's silence. "The point is, don't feel you have to come with us. You aren't caught up in all of this," she said to Zangulus. 

"Naturally, I don't intend to come with you," Zangulus said, standing up. "However, once this is over, I want one last duel with Gourry." 

"You aren't going to fight Philbert with us?" Gourry asked Zangulus. 

Zangulus adjusted his wide-brimmed hat, and said, "No, I.... don't do well in groups. You know." He shrugged, and turned and walked out of the tavern. 

Martina stood up, and gazed off after Zangulus. He was so cool. That stylish cape... That upturned hat.... Suddenly she shook her head. _No, Martina_, she told herself. _The only person you can trust is yourself. Just think about the resurrection of Zoamelgustar-sama._ She turned to look back in the direction Zangulus had gone. _But.... But still.... _She then drifted off into a daydream full of her and Zangulus. 

Lina stared at Martina. "Boy, does she need a better eye for guys," she said monotonously. 

"Tell me about it," Sylphiel agreed. 

...§...§... 

"There it is," Lina announced the next morning as they stood on the trail, overlooking Sairaag. 

Everything was just as Sylphiel said. The city, which had been destroyed just a short time ago, had been rebuilt, and the Holy Tree Flagoon was gone. In it's stead was a large dome-shaped building. 

"The city's back!" Gourry exclaimed, happily oblivious, just proving Lina's theory that ignorance really is bliss. 

Amelia said, "I didn't think you could rebuild a city this fast." 

"You can't," Lina told her. 

"Well, we can't just stand here," Martina said impatiently. "Let's go already!" 

Sylphiel gazed off in the direction of the domed building while Lina and the others started towards Sairaag again. "Flagoon," she said, remembering the Great Tree that had once stood in the town. It was gone... 

...§...§... 

A hay wagon driven by a farmer and his team of horses was rolling through the city streets. Out of the hay in the back poked the green-haired head of Martina. 

"Why do I have to ride in the back of a hay cart?? I'm a royal princess!!" she complained. 

Lina peeked out as well, and said to Martina, "Amelia's a princess and you don't see her complaining." 

"Just let this cart take us into town," Amelia said to Martina, sticking her head out too. 

Sylphiel decided to come and have a look too. She glanced around, and gasped. "Lina-san !This isn't a new town!" she told them. 

"What do you mean?" Lina asked her. 

"Not a new town?" Martina echoed. 

Sylphiel looked around again to make sure. "No, this isn't a new town. Come with me!" She leapt out of the back of the cart, and started running towards a small hill off the road. The others were quick to follow, except Gourry, who had fallen asleep in the cart. Lina had to run back and drag him out by his hair, and then catch up with the others. 

Sylphiel took them all to a small grassy hill, with a large tree at the top. "Look at this, everyone," she said, walking up to the tree. 

"What is it?" Gourry asked. 

"When I was little, my father would mark on this tree every year how much I'd grown." Sylphiel knelt down at touched the marks on the tree, remembering her father. A tear sprang to her eyes at the thought of him. "I'm sure this tree was destroyed in the explosion." 

"So, that means," Amelia started. 

Lina finished for her. "This city isn't new. It's been completely regenerated." 

"But how could someone do that?" Gourry asked the others, and for once, they didn't have an answer for him. 

In the short silence that followed, there was a single, deep voice that broke through. "Sylphiel?" Lina and Amelia started at who they saw. Gourry didn't recognize him, and Martina wouldn't know him, but... 

Sylphiel, whose back was to him, stiffened and gasped. "It... it can't be," she whispered quietly. She turned around sharply, right into the arms of her father! "Oh, father! Father!" she cried, hugging him. 

"Sylphiel!" her father, Eruk, responded, hugging her back. 

"Oh, father," Sylphiel said. "I was so sure... When the city had been blown away.... That you...." 

Lina stepped forward, and placed a hand on Sylphiel's shoulder, pulling her slightly away from Eruk. "Sorry to interrupt this touching moment," she said. "But I think I'd like some answers here." 

...§...§... 

At Eruk's home, they all sat around a large square table. As they had walked through the house, they noticed that everything was as it once had been, the first time they were in his house. 

"Now, what can I do for you, Lina Inverse-san?" Eruk asked, folding his hands on the table. 

"What do you think?" Lina demanded, crossing her arms. "I want to know what's going on here. How can this city be completely regenerated like this? Huh?" 

Eruk closed his eyes, and looked at the table. "The truth is, none of the people in this city are alive," he told her. 

Lina nodded, and leaned back in her seat. "I figured as much." 

"Wait, what's that mean?" Gourry asked. "You're dead?" 

Eruk nodded. "Right now, everyone in this city is dwelling in the Underworld," he told them. 

"How could someone do something like that?" Amelia asked. 

Slowly shaking his head, Eruk replied, "We were not created to answer that question. We only have what knowledge Hellmaster allows us to have. For us to answer that question would be as impossible for us as it would be for a human to breathe underwater without magical aide." 

"I see," Lina said slowly. 

"You can breathe underwater??" Gourry asked incredulously, pointing at Eruk. 

Lina elbowed him in the head. "No, jellyfish-baka!!" she shouted. Gourry rubbed his head, more confused than ever. 

"Can you tell us," Amelia asked. "Where Phibrizzo is?" 

Eruk nodded again. "He is in the center of the town. In the temple of Hellmaster." 

And that's just where they went. Amelia flew around the large domed building, looking for a way in. Though she would never let on to anyone, she was scared. Scared for Zelgadis. Scared of Phibrizzo. Scared that she might actually have to do what he wanted her to. She was scared of so many things.... And she could never let the others know. Just like she could never let Lina know about Lord Infinity or her spell. They were things that should never be known. 

So when Amelia landed on the ground again near Lina and the others, she hid her feelings. "I couldn't find any entrances," she told Lina. "There doesn't seem to be any way in." What she also didn't tell Lina was they she did see an entrance. In the center of the dome, on the very top, there was a glass window. But, for what Amelia was planning, she couldn't let Lina and the others come with her, so they couldn't know of the way in. 

Lina rolled up her sleeves, and said, "Then we'll _make_ a way in!!" She stalked up to the wall, and shouted, "_Damu Bras_!" 

The resulting explosion was huge. Much larger than it should have been for just a Damu Bras. When the smoke cleared away, the wall was still in perfect condition, not a score or scratch on it. 

"It looks like it has a shield protecting it," Sylphiel said. 

"Then we blast through the shield!" Lina shouted, not wanting to let some stupid building stop her. "_Darkness beyond twilight, crimson beyond blood that flows..."_

"Lina! !You're casting the Dragon Slave!" Gourry shouted, grabbing Lina's arms from behind her. 

Lina struggling against him, kicking and flailing her arms. "You think I don't know that??" she demanded. "But if I'm gonna break through that shield, I need a big spell!!" 

"Gourry-san is right, though," Amelia said. "I don't think a bigger spell would make a difference. I think the wall was meant to block all spells." 

Lina hit Gourry's face with the back of her head, releasing his grip on her, and stood up, brushing herself off. "Well, then we'll just..." 

She broke off when she heard Sylphiel behind her. Sylphiel was helping Gourry to his feet. "Gourry-sama... Are you all right?" she asked tenderly. 

Gourry nodded, rubbing his head. "Yeah, I'm fine." 

"Aggh, I'm gonna be sick..." Lina complained. 

"What's with you all of a sudden?" Martina asked, noticing Lina's drastic change in behavior. 

"Nothing," Lina said quickly. She stretched her arms above her head with a smile. "Nothing, nothing!" 

Amelia sighed, and looked over at the temple. "Maybe we should go for now?" she asked. "And later tonight, we can each try to find our own ways in?" 

Lina looked over at Amelia from the corner of her eyes. She shrugged, and said, "Yeah, sure. Come on, guys." Then she started back towards Eruk's house, Amelia close behind. 

"Wait for me!" Martina cried, chasing after them, and was closely followed by Gourry and Sylphiel. 

...§...§... 

During most of the afternoon, everyone slept, getting their strength back up for the last battle with Phibrizzo. Amelia, however, was anything but asleep. She just lay on her sleeping bag on the floor, staring at the ceiling. Phibrizzo only wanted her, not anybody else. If the others went with her, they might get hurt. And she definitely didn't want that. 

Amelia sighed, and rolled over onto her side, holding the blanket up over her shoulders. It seemed the only way to do it was to go alone. Then Lina and the others wouldn't get hurt as well. Zelgadis already got hurt because of her. Tears sprang up in Amelia's eyes, remembering how Phibrizzo had taken Zelgadis away, and then made them fight him. 

Making up her mind, Amelia shoved off her covers, quickly changed back into her clothes and out of her pajamas, and tiptoed out of the house to make sure she wouldn't wake anyone else up. She opened the door slowly, and peeked out. It was full dark outside now. 

With one last look over her shoulder into the house, Amelia took off running down the streets, heading for the temple. It wasn't too long before Amelia heard another set of footsteps, along with her own. She looked behind her, and saw Lina running to catch up! Amelia stopped mid-step, and stared at Lina. 

"Lina-san, what are you..." she started to ask, but Lina interrupted her. 

"Just where do you think you're going?" Lina asked, jabbing a finger at her. "You're going after Phibrizzo alone, aren't you?" 

Amelia looked away, ashamed that she had to trick her friends like that. "Well," she said slowly. "It's only me he wants... And if you all came, then you could get hurt..." 

Lina smiled a little, and settled back. "That's just like you, Amelia," she said. "But it's also just like you to get into too much trouble for your own good." 

"L-lina-san..." Amelia asked slowly, almost knowing what she was getting at. 

"Meaning, I have no choice but to come with you!" Lina said with a raised fist. 

Amelia's eyes sparkled. "Thank you, Lina-san!" she said honestly. 

Lina put a hand on Amelia's shoulder. "Then let's go," she said. "to Phibrizzo's temple." 

Amelia nodded, the look of determination in her eyes matching that of Lina's . 


	6. The Temple of Phibrizzo

**Slayers NEXT: Alternate Past**

****

**Authoress Notes: **AAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!!!!! FORGIVE ME PLEEEEEEEEEEEEEASE!?!??!?! I haven't updated in a MILLENIA!!! SERIOUSLY!!!! If you checked back at my bio (I do updates on there a lot) then you'd know I had computer problems, I started school again, stuff like that... I am so so _so so SO SO _sorry!!! Please please please forgive me? (By the way, I also updated Dark Memories too). 

**SPOILER WARNING: A LOT OF THIS STUFF HAPPENS OR IS VERY CLOSE TO WHAT HAPPENS IN THE SERIES. IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE LAST HALF DOZEN EPISODES OF NEXT, YOU MIGHT NOT WANT TO READ THIS.**

Gourry was the first one to notice something wasn't right. He woke up, but didn't sit up, and tried to think of what it was. He looked around a little bit, and his eyes automatically wandered over to where Lina was sleeping. He sat up in shock. Lina was gone! He looked around again, and, sure enough, Amelia was gone too. 

"Guys! Guys, everyone, wake up!" he shouted, scrambling out of his sleeping bag. 

"Gourry-sama?" Sylphiel asked sleepily. "What's going on?" 

Gourry stood up, and grabbed his armor, strapping it on top of his pajamas. "Lina and Amelia are gone! They went to fight Phiburtle on their own!" 

Sylphiel threw off her blankets with a gasp. "They did? Oh, no! Gourry-sama, we must go help them!" 

"That's what we're doing," Gourry answered, buckling his sword around his hips. "Come on, Martina," he said loudly. 

Martina rolled over, and looked up at Gourry. "Wha...?" she murmured, bleary-eyed and still half-asleep. 

"We're going after Lina!" Gourry grabbed Martina's arm and dragged her to her feet. "Come on!" 

Sylphiel, still in her pajamas as well, was holding her rod, ready to go. Martina scurried to her feet, grabbed her Zoamelgustar talisman, and said, "I'm ready too!" 

Gourry nodded. "Good. Then let's go find them!" He ran out of the house, Martina and Sylphiel right behind him. None of them seemed concerned by the fact that they were still in their pajamas. 

They ran through the streets, trying to find Lina and Amelia. They hadn't gone very far, however, when they were suddenly surrounded by the villagers. They were just farmers, merchants, and peasants, wielding rakes or hoes or clubs. 

Gourry and the others stopped, trapped by the villagers. "Now what?" Gourry asked, needing to get to Lina. He couldn't protect her if he wasn't with her! 

"I could Ray Wing us out of here?" Sylphiel asked. 

Martina pointed up. "L-l-l-look!" she cried. 

The others looked up, and found a dozen flying demons above them. "We're completely surrounded," Gourry said. 

"We can't fight these people," Sylphiel said, covering her mouth. "They don't know what they're doing! They're just being controlled by Phibrizzo!" 

"Then what do we do??" Martina shrieked. 

Gourry drew his sword, not wanting to fight them either. "I... don't know," he said, shaking his head. 

A man with a rake raised his 'weapon' above his head, and charged at Gourry. Gourry sidestepped him, letting the man's momentum carry him back to the group of villagers on the other side of the circle. 

As if that was a cue, villagers from all around them started to attack them. Gourry, Sylphiel, and Martina didn't want to attack, so all they could do was dodge the villagers as they came at them. 

... §...§... 

Lina and Amelia ran down the streets, heading straight for Phibrizzo's temple. "Phibrizzo wants me to cast a spell," Amelia said as they ran. "The Claire Bible told me about it. But it calls on the power of Lord Infinity, the source of chaos!" 

"So if you miscast that spell," Lina started. 

"The universe would be destroyed!" Amelia finished for her. "So I can't cast that spell!" 

Lina nodded. "Right. Don't worry, Amelia. You won't have to." 

As they ran, Amelia was truly grateful that she had Lina to go with her. She didn't really want to go by herself. It would have been way too scary! 

... §...§... 

Gourry ducked under a swinging club, and rolled aside, coming back up on one knee. Sylphiel, who had tried to dodge a man with a shovel, staggered backwards, and started to fall. Gourry caught her before she could hit the ground, and helped her back to her feet. "You okay?" he asked her quickly. 

Sylphiel nodded, blushing. 

Martina turned to look at Gourry. "There's no end to them!" she shrieked. "What are we going to do??" 

Gourry shook his head. "Martina, I don't know, but--" He broke off, seeing a huge man with a club raised above his head, right behind Martina. "Martina, look out!" 

Martina half-turned around, but there was no way she could dodge it in time. At the last possible moment, something swooped down, and whisked her out of the way. Zangulus landed on one knee, holding Martina, and looked up. He saw Gourry and Sylphiel standing there, oblivious to Martina, who was blushing and gazing up at him with loving eyes. 

Zangulus helped Martina to her feet, and turned to Gourry. "There you are. I still want that duel!" 

Gourry sighed in exasperation. "Zangulus, I can't fight you until after we kill Heckmaster! Okay?" he said. 

"Humph," was Zangulus's answer. "In that case, I'll help you. The sooner Hellmaster is dead, the sooner we can duel!" 

"Right, right..." Gourry muttered. 

Zangulus drew his sword. "Bring it on!" he shouted. 

... §...§... 

Lina and Amelia finally reached the temple. "So, how do you propose we get inside?" Lina asked Amelia, looking up at the towering building. 

"I didn't tell anyone, but there's a way in from the top," Amelia said. "A window..." 

Lina looked over at Amelia. "You had this planned all along, didn't you?" 

"Sort of," Amelia admitted. "Let's go! _Levitation_!" She heard Lina cast the spell immediately behind her, and they both flew up to the top of the domed building. Just like Amelia said, there was a stained-glass window in the very top of the building. 

"_Fireball_!" Lina shouted, throwing the spell at the window, shattering it. 

"Was that really necessary, Lina-san?" Amelia asked. 

Lina clenched her fist, and said, "I have to make up for not using lots of big spells lately! Gotta get my stress level down!" 

"Of course," Amelia murmured. 

"All right!!! Let's go, Amelia!!" Lina shouted, and went down the hole where the window had been, Amelia close behind. 

... §...§... 

The shock wave ripped through a whole wall of villagers, knocking them off their feet and to every side. "Zangulus!" Gourry protested. 

"All who get in between me and my duel with you must die," Zangulus shouted, letting loose another shock wave at the villagers. 

Behind Zangulus, Martina was standing, her hands balled up by her face, and a dreamy look in her eyes, staring straight at Zangulus. "Aaah.... Zangulus-sama...." 

... §...§... 

Amelia and Lina levitated down from the ceiling through the hole in the window. They were surprised how deep down the temple went. They looked down, but all they saw was black for a long time, and a strange green light that looked very far away. 

"What do you supposed that light could be, Lina-san?" Amelia asked as they levitated quickly down. 

Lina shook her head. "I dunno. But I'm guessing that whatever it is, that's what we want to head for." 

"Probably," Amelia agreed. 

They floated for quite a ways in silence after that. When they got closer, they realized that the green light was coming from some sort of huge crystal. "What is that?" Lina asked quietly, slowing down to get a better look at it. 

Amelia slowed her descent as well, and stared at the glowing crystal. As they got closer to it, she could see dark shadows inside. "What's that?" she wondered. 

Suddenly, when they were level with the crystal, they could see only too well what the dark shadows were. "The inhabitants of Sairaag!" Lina gasped upon recognition. 

"I've been waiting for you, ladies," Phibrizzo's voice said. Amelia and Lina both looked down, and saw him sitting on a shelf of rock, jutting out from just in front of the crystal. The two of them touched down on the ground, and glared up at where Phibrizzo was sitting. 

"What's with all of this?" Lina demanded, gesturing to the crystal behind Phibrizzo. 

Hellmaster looked up, smiling. "Oh, this? It makes for a nice little decoration, doesn't it?" he asked. 

"For someone with a sick sense of aesthetics, maybe," Lina muttered under her breath. 

Phibrizzo ignored that comment, or else he couldn't hear it. He raised one hand, and snapped his fingers. The crystal behind him glowed even brighter. "This is what allows me to control the inhabitants of Sairaag," he told them. "Convenient little puppets for me." 

Amelia clenched her fists in anger, but didn't say anything. 

Phibrizzo grinned. "Getting angry at me? Well, then, are you ready to do as I asked?" 

"One more thing," Amelia said. "Where's Zelgadis-san?" 

"Oh, the chimera-man," Phibrizzo said, nodding. He snapped his fingers again, and Zelgadis appeared in the air beside him, encased in a crystal. 

Amelia gasped, and started forward a step. "What have you done to him?" she demanded. 

Phibrizzo just grinned. "Nothing, yet. But in order to release him from the crystal, you have to kill me." He grin got even wider. "I'm afraid that's the only way." 

"We'll do that, then!" Lina shouted up at him loudly. 

... §...§... 

They were surrounded once again by the villagers, and even Zangulus was at the end of his rope. No matter how many times he used his shock wave attack, more and more people just took the place of the ones he blew aside. "This is insane!" Zangulus shouted angrily. 

"What are we going to do???" Martina whined, trying to fend off a rake-weilding farmer with her stick. 

Gourry tried to think of something. Nothing was coming to mind, though. They couldn't blast through the seemingly innumerable villagers, they couldn't fly away.... 

"Gourry-sama! Look out!" Sylphiel shouted, running over to him. She pushed Gourry out of the way, just in time to receive a bonk to the head from a man with a club that would have hit Gourry, knocking her halfway through the stone street. 

Gourry shoved the villager away, and started to help Sylphiel out of the hole she'd been knocked through. "Are you okay, Sylphiel?" 

Sylphiel looked up at him with teary eyes and a bump on her head. "This isn't working, Gourry-sama...." 

Sighing, Gourry lifted Sylphiel out of the hole. Then he suddenly had a rare lightning bolt of an idea. "Of course! We can use that! Zangulus, come here!" 

Zangulus ran over to Gourry, and asked, "What is it?" 

Gourry pointed at the ground. "Use your shock wave on the road," he said. "There are still tunnels under here left over from Flagoon! We can use those!" 

"Of course!" Zangulus shouted, and prepared to attack the road with his shock wave. 


End file.
